Is Your Ukulele Stamped
“Oliver Ditson Co.”?

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Did you just find a Ditson ukulele? Use the form or email button to send your questions about what you have, the value, having it repaired, or what to do with it. Our goal is to preserve these instruments so they can continue to be played and enjoyed.

Submissions of information, pictures, and feedback for the website will be gratefully received. Ditson catalogs from 1915 – 1930, period photographs of people playing Ditson ukuleles, and Ditson ukulele instruction books and sheet music from that period are of particular interest.

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Oliver Ditson built a successful retail empire publishing sheet music and later selling instruments in Boston. Expansion followed and he set up his sons with branch stores in other large cities, including the Chas. H. Ditson store in New York City. 1915 brought the Hawaiian music boom and massive ukulele sales. To satisfy demand, Ditson stocked ukuleles from several makers, including a range specially made for them by C.F. Martin & Co., and stamped with the Ditson brand.

Harry L. Hunt, manager of the New York branch, recognized the growing ukulele trend in his travels and buying trips. His keen interest helped push Martin into full-scale ukulele production in 1915, with Ditson their first and largest customer. Hunt corresponded frequently with Martin to develop and refine the product range. He specified the wide-waisted dreadnought shape for instruments made for his Chas. Ditson store, and supplied a Nunes taropatch to Martin for reference in creating their line of 8 string taropatch models. Ditson received the first taropatches made by Martin, and the very first Style 5K ukulele.

The Boston branch waited until 1918 to start ordering ukuleles from Martin, and chose the standard Martin shape stamped with the Ditson brand. Oliver Ditson bought far fewer Martin-made ukuleles than Chas. Ditson and by 1927, orders from both stores had tapered off, with the company closing its doors soon after in 1931.

What Makes a Ditson Ukulele Special?

The slightly larger air chamber and dreadnought body shape of the “Ditson Model” ukuleles produce an unusually fine tone. Projection and volume are exceptional. Although a century has passed, professional musicians and hobbyist players still seek out Ditson ukuleles for their unique sound and feel. The longevity of these instruments is testament to the quality and crafstmanship of Frank Henry Martin’s factory.

Many details, aside from the body shape, distinguish Ditsons from regular Martin ukuleles. Ditson often fit their own tuners, usually Champion friction pegs, in place of the standard Martin wood pegs. For this, Hunt specified a slightly thicker headstock. Fingerboard differences include adding side position markers, some orders with inlay at the 3rd fret, and moving the 9th fret marker to the 10th. Ditson focused almost exclusively on mahogany ukuleles and ordered some with a specially polished “antique” finish which was fashionable at the time. The striking appearance, excellent sound, and heritage of Martin’s golden era of ukulele building make each Ditson ukulele a special and historic item.

“Perfect instruments of the better kind Ditson Quality they are manufactured for us under our own special supervision, carefully constructed of the best material correct model, true scale. Every instrument thoroughly tested before shipment and they are used, recommended, and sought for, by the most prominent professional players.”

1931

2015

DITSON UKULELE STYLES

Introduced 1915

Mahogany body with rosewood top binding and 12 fret fingerboard. A hot seller as the plainest & cheapest model when introduced. The most common Ditson ukulele with over 1000 made. Very few made from Hawaiian Koa wood as Style 1K in 1921.

Style 2

Mahogany body with contrasting ivoroid binding on front and back, 12 fret fingerboard. Mid-priced model produced in smaller quantities than Style 1. A lovely balance between ornamentation and function.

Style 3

Mahogany body with multi-ply binding front and back. Body and headstock inlaid with ivoroid. 17 fret fingerboard with pearl inlay and center stripe. Top of the line, Martin’s fanciest model until the introduction of Style 5 in late 1921.

Introduced 1921-22

Unbound mahogany body, 12 fret fingerboard with single dot markers at frets 5, 7, and 10. Introduced in 1922 as a plainer and cheaper model at the bottom of the range and became Ditson’s most frequently ordered model from that point forward.

First made December 1921. Hawaiian Koa body inlaid with pearl on front and back. Bound fingerboard with fancy pearl position markers. Inlaid headstock and patent pegs. The fanciest and most expensive model.